An animal rescue shelter in Kankakee County is trying to bounce back after a close call earlier this week in what volunteers at River Valley Animal Rescue believe could have ended in tragedy with dozens of dogs dead. NBC Chicago’s Vi Nguyen reports.
An animal rescue shelter in Kankakee County is trying to bounce back after a close call earlier this week in what volunteers at River Valley Animal Rescue believe could have ended in tragedy with dozens of dogs dead.
"We could have lost all these babies," said volunteer Kate Harvell.
Harvell told NBC Chicago she noticed the camera system was down at the shelter Tuesday around 8 p.m., and a volunteer rushed over to discover an early start to what could have been a huge fire.
"She came down here and found that it was full of black smoke, ash in here, and a very distinct burn smell going on in the building," said Harvell.
A team of volunteers and dog lovers banded together in the extreme cold to make sure dozens of dogs were safe, along with a new litter of puppies.
"If she wouldn't have gotten here when she did, we could have got the worst-case scenario where we had a fire with all these babies in it," she said.
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Harvell said firefighters responded and discovered the cause: a transformer right across the street.
"A big power surge had come through the building from a ComEd pole that was damaged and it had shot through the electrical lines and fried surge protectors," she explained.
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Mary Posing, who volunteers at the rescue facility three times a week, said they've been working to get everything repaired, replaced and back up and running to help care for their furry friends.
"We lost a lot of our appliances, we lost our furnace, we lost our computer system, our phone, our washer, our dryers," said Posing.
The community has been stepping up to help after what happened.
"The tragedy turned into something that we were able to rebound to because we have such wonderful community support."
So far the community helped to raise around $1,700 to cover the cost and other expenses for the animals.
"I am very thankful for this place and the people that are in it, because a dog lover and animal lover, they always put them first," said Harvell.
Click here if you’d like to help.
